Season’s Greetings

We hope this finds you and yours in good health and the best of spirits.

Life is good. Cruising beats working.

We started the year with a cruise in the Caribbean aboard SV Gypsy Queen. We sailed from Guadeloupe to Martinique calling on Les Saintes and Dominica. It was a good cruise with some delightful surprises. The most amazing was that the French Islands are France, probably more so than Hawaii is US.

Fred skied Colorado with the Frisco bunch. That happening continues to work in spite of the odds.

In March SV Perception was recommissioned in Corfu, Greece and the 2002 season commenced. The first cruise was south thru the Ionian and then east thru the Gulf of Corinth, Corinth Canal, and the Saronic to Athens.

After a short bout and small ransom, the Port Police let Perception out of jail. We sailed south thru the Saronic along the east coast of Peloponnesus, then to Kithra in the Ionian and to Crete.

We had a couple of good weeks on Crete checking out Minoan artifacts, sailing the Gulf of Mirabello and taking a day trip to Santorini. From Crete we headed east and north to Kassos, Karpathos and Rodos.

It was in Rodos, while berthed at the quay, minding her own business, Perception suffered her first collision. She was run over by a 39 meter, 247 ton day boat. The damage was minor and repairs made.

From Rodos we sailed north to Marmaris, Turkey. Marmaris was our base for the rest of the season and it is in Marmaris that Perception is spending the winter. We have sailed west and north to Bodrum, Kusadasi, and Cesme; east to Gocek and Fethiye. We have traveled by car or bus to Efes (Ephesus), Ayden, Mugla, Izmer, Pergammon, Channekkale, Istanbul, Pamukkale, Bursa, Troy and Gallipoli.

During the season we have had guest crews from Puerto Rico, Texas and Georgia, England and Scotland, and the Alsace of France. Phyl has seen ships flagged from 35 countries. She takes a serious interest in identifying the ensigns of all the ships we see. Some good moments come when we meet and share experiences with the yachtsmen docked close by. One or two bad ones happen this way, also. The people of Greece and Turkey have been for us a joy. Their hospitality and good humor is near unbelievable.

We are back in Texas for family, holidays, shopping, skiing, doctors, dentists, and taxes.

Life is good. Cruising beats working.

If you are Internet ready and are interested in photos or detailed reports email us at denton@flash.net and we will invite to join our email group.

May the Season and the New Year have a special impact in your life.

Phyl & Fred

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